Big Basket, Reliance among firms to feature in organic fair

More people adopting organic food and millets in their diet will not only encourage farmers to grow more of these environment-friendly produce and realise better incomes.ET Bureau | April 25, 2017, 07:59 IST

The government has formed 14 cooperative federations of organic farmers which can deal directly with business groups and market their produce.BENGALURU: Online grocery store Big Basket, retailers Metro, Reliance Fresh, and Spar Hypermarkets, and food giants ITC Group and Britannia are among the several retailers and food firms that have confirmed participation at the three day national trade fair on Organics and Millets that will open at the Palace Grounds in Bengaluru on April 28.

Agriculture Minister Krishna Byregowda said on Monday that this was the first national event of its sorts aimed at promoting consumption of organic produce and millets. The event will provide a national platform for growers to showcase their organic produce to retailers, bulk marketers, processors, exporters and secure further business opportunities. This will cut out middlemen from the picture, he said.

More people adopting organic food and millets in their diet will not only encourage farmers to grow more of these environment-friendly produce and realise better incomes. Among the organic farming states, Karnataka figures in the third place after Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. In terms of consumption, however, Bengaluru remains the largest market accounting for about Rs 250 crore. Exports still account for 3500 crore of the Rs 4500 crore estimate size of organic products in India, the Minister said.

The government has formed 14 cooperative federations of organic farmers which can deal directly with business groups and market their produce. The government, he said, is open to assist them with grading their produce and packaging so that they can realise a better price.

Talking of millets, Krishna Byregowda said, Karnataka is one of the leading producers of millets, and unless millet consumption increases, the government’s production incentives would ndot yield sizeable benefits. His department, he said, has been running awareness campaigns.